Concord established

The first moves for the establishment of the Municipality of Concord as a local government unit were made in 1859 when the Government Gazette recorded the receipt of a petition from 200 residents respectfully asking for their district to be incorporated. At the time, according to the petitioners, there were 935 adults and 1065 children living in the district. This petition was opposed by a counter petition signed by some 336 people and was therefore rejected.

A second petition, this time successful, was presented to the governor of New South Wales by 141 residents of Concord in March 1883, ‘praying for a proposed new Municipality, to be styled the Municipal District of Concord’. The area of the proposed new municipality – nine square kilometers – supported a population of over 500 residents.

Governor Loftus issued the proclamation incorporating the Municipality of Concord on 11th August, 1883. The western boundary was ‘the right bank of Powell’s Creek northerly to the Parramatta River’ and in the east the northern boundary was the Parramatta River and in the south the municipality reached ‘a line along the centre of [Parramatta] road’ to meet the north boundary of the Municipality of Burwood.

A change was made to these original parameters in 1899 when thirty-one residents south of Parramatta Road petitioned for annexation to the Municipality of Concord. Their homes had been isolated by the construction of the northern branch of the railway line in 1886. As a result of this petition, another sixteen hectares were added to the Municipality of Concord. This is the area around Swan Avenue and up to the main rail line at Strathfield.